By Jess McCabe | 27 April 2005, 11:12

A new shelter is being set up for elderly survivors of the sex trade in Mexico City, the Guardian reports today.

The site of the shelter is a grand, abandoned sports museums, which the local authorities are providing rent free. It’s being developed by a coalition of NGOs and local feminists, who have taken on the project as a personal cause.

Jo Tuckman interviewed some of the 120 elderly women who work the district, including Marilú Torres.

‘“This year is my golden anniversary as a sex worker,” laughed Marilú, who became a prostitute as a young widow with no other means of feeding her three children. “I’m not complaining, I’ve learned a lot about life in this job. But the old bones are turning to dust like the mummies, and it would be nice to be able to stop soon.”’